Making a profit is all about making the sale. Of course, that’s what you want – a profitable sales strategy.

When you have a good handle on inventory flow, you’re ahead of the game because, in today’s marketplace, where business is competing for attention on the internet and on the street, if you don’t have an inventory management system in place that can help you identity top sellers, and keep those items in stock, you could lose sales as well as customer traffic to your website and to your store.

Certainly popular items are profit-makers. But here’s another idea that could generate more sales – products that may not be in high demand. These, so-called “niche” products could score you new customers – those online shoppers who search the internet for something they know they want but can’t easily find in a store or even a printed catalog.

If you happen to carry what they want, and list it on your website, bingo! You’re found. And you’ve found a new, happy online customer who could potentially be a loyal customer – the one who writes up a rave review about your store on Yelp, or leaves a positive comment on your website, or spreads the word about your store on Facebook.

Ah, the power of the internet simply can’t be ignored. If you stick to what sells you could be limiting your potential for greater online profits.

Perhaps a better sales strategy is to broaden your inventory focus – and your inventory management system can help you do this – to identify those slow-to-sell niche products.

If you stock just enough low-demand products in inventory you may still make a sale because, you never know, someone may be searching online right now to buy it.